Ever Since I Can Remember

I've loved collared shirts. They are timeless and add just enough of a menswear inspired touch to any look. Classic and structured and perfect. I feel like even a ponytail becomes stylish with a fitted collared shirt.

Here are some looks that I love from shopbop. BTW, Shopbop has revamped there site, which I would be very curious to know more about. A) Has it helped with sales? I actually think it's harder to navigate and less aesthetically appealing, but the proof is in the sales! B) Why are items not tagged properly! Just googled collared shirt" and received one item. Not good!

By Tibi

And oh how I love this. And even as good from the back!

Find here, at Singer22

Trendzzz

This just came up on WhoWhatWear... are they serious? Man, I can't even imagine how many men would be drooling after the "girl in the tiger sweater." Seems like a prime product for the ManRepeller..

On a prettier note, this is awesome for fall. So many options with this one! I want I want.

I wish I had ordered it in advance. It would make the perfect outfit to wear this weekend, to the Brisket Lab.(Joking, kinda). My friend invited me to her neck of the woods to go taste some brisket and OMG doesnt it look sooo good. http://newyork.seriouseats.com/2012/08/daniel-delaneys-brisketlab-is-some-legit-texas-barbecue.html So may things to try in this city, and so much good food!!

How cool is this look btw?

More here!

Beauty Balms

So this is a but astray from my normal posts, but I do LOVE beauty products and I also love learning about what's new, and sometimes, what is being reinvented. I've tried a lot of what's out there and consider myself pretty familiar with both skincare and cosmetic product mixes. A new product to the market that I thought I would share is Garnier's BB Cream. It's basically like a tinted moisturizer on steroids: more skin benefits, more SPF, and in my opinion, better coverage.

Buy it here,  or at your local drugstore.

I enjoy staying aware of new drugstore products and love studying their packaging, but I've found as a general trend that price does (most of the time) impact the quality of beauty products. There are always exceptions to the rule, however. I have long gone with Laura Mercier tinted moisturizer and recently switched to Too Faced Tinted Beauty Balm, but I saw an ad for the Garnier product and of course needed to test it out.

I actually purchased the light and the dark formula and mix them together to get a more fitting blend. This product smells great (in line with other Garnier scents), and the color and texture is really smooth. In the past, I've found that it's the texture & pigment that differentiates drugstore level cosmetics (skin, lip and eye) from more upscale products. This BB Cream is actually the first drugstore cosmetic product (aside from Maybelline mascara) that I've wanted to consistently use in a long time, and the value is great. From a marketing perspective, a huge selling point to me was that the cream was grouped with the skincare products (although there was most likely no other option - Garnier doesn't have cosmetics, right?), but casting this skincare feel on the product reinvents it and creates a bit of a wedge between it and other tinted moisturizers. The fact that you can call it "balm" but it actually serves as a kind of foundation isn't a bad strategy either. Good job, Garnier.

If you're interested in further researching these BB creams, this article is helpful.  So have you tried the beauty balm? Do you think it's just a fad, or is it the modern day tinted moisturizer? How do you think the drugstore versions stack up to the higher end products?

Stay-cation

Another small leave of absence I've taken, as I recently moved to a new (much cooler) apartment and done some other random things. But in the midst of "building" my new room - nesting, if you will, I've found some things that... I just really want I just really need. Again, I find etsy housing lots of these thingys.

1. Raw Wood Coat Rack

I'm going to possibly, potentially try and make this on my own. Once I find wood. And a saw.

2. This Surreal Photo. It called to me with it's title "Room for Rent."

Apartment hunting in NYC is NOT FUN. And that is as polite as I can be about it. (I get frustrated when I even think about the 3 weeks I spent with my roommate walking into little dumpy shitholes with sweaty brokers telling us that it was the best thing we were going to see in our lifetimes. Anyways, 3 weeks, 45 apartments, 6 open houses and 4 application rejections later (we were "outbid"), we got a palace.) With a terrace. yea.

3. This is kind of cool because it's a wooden sign that you can customize. Make it your own.

I have an idea of what I would want it to say, but I assure you, it will be nothing like "Dream" or "Laugh Out Loud" or something "Home Sweet Home." I also think that given that I already have a deer head (horns, no head) hanging above my nightstand, which casts a shadow on my ceiling (Cool), that this cowboy would most likely be overkill and I should bring out the rustic theme in other areas. So I think I will do that. Anyways, still a kind of cool thing.

4. Lastly, there is this rustic looking painting that I really like the colors of. 

I like anything like this where you look at a photo/painting/small birdhouse/whatever and you think, "I'd live in that, or at least walk around in it, if I could.

So these are my current little prizes that I want to win.

Leave of Absence

But I'm Back!! One quick pic to kick the day off below. Look how beautiful the Brooklyn Bridge is at dusk!! New York has the best sunsets sometimes.

From Manhattan to Brooklyn Heights, for dinner with friends.

And this was the adorable row of townhomes we went to on Columbia Place, like an old Southern town! 

Stylish Dressers

Rugged chic in the bedroom? You bet. Quick post, but awesome products below. Check West Elm for more.

Find it here. I LOVE this bed.

Here is the matching dresser. I've find similar woodsey items on Etsy like this, although I'm not quite sure how Etsy handles shipping... dressers. This is definitely going to be in my new room. If I get the new apartment I'm hoping on.;)

Good Boots, Bad Boots

There are so many cool cowboy-esque boots out there. So many choices, some with studs, some with color, heels, high rise and what not. So many have really cool accents that make them edgy, or rugged, and some... take me back to a costume from the Dixie Stampede. For those of you who don't know what this is (a. you should be proud of yourself) it is a "dinner / show" that I saw in Orlando, or was it Gatlinburg kinda the same thing, just one has mountains where actors dress in cowboy & cowgirl attire & gallop (literally) around a dirt filled stage while you eat oregon trail style mass produced baked potatoes & other 'meats' with your fingers. But back to the point.

The thing with cowboy boots is that some can be so cool, and some can be so... Dixie. See the powder blue example below.

Taken from here 

Again, to each his own, but I am just not sure where you'd where these puppies? They are just a bit to blue for my tastes. Imagine these added to a pair of denim jeans. Now how do you feel? They are also featured  here on the country outfitter blog, which does a nice job comparing the trend with the Isabel Marant Fall 2012 looks (below) that showcase some cremey colored boots. But anyways, these boots ≠ my fave.

But I do love THIS version. If you want more, visit the site. 

I think this leads us to why the ankle boots are so popular this season. Because they have a short cut, and even with a western influence, will not morph your look into that of a rancher/farmhand. Please note that the Isabel Marant looks are extreme western, in a fashionable way, but keep in mind... this is runway, and the looks are modeled...on MODELS.

Get em while they're hot. Somewhere on this page.  PS. I love the studs.

What's great about these runway looks (more below) that can be translated into everyday life - is that the designer uses a Western style to influence the line, but also employs leather, lace & studs to give it character and make it new! This is a good tactic that can be used when working with western pieces that are oh so popular today. Wearing boots? Add a stud belt. A little contrast is always good.

Check out these awesome ensembles here

So what is your take on this wave of western? Do you think it will last? Would love to hear some feedback on this style. And most importantly, should the Blue Boots get THE BOOT?!!